Lets start with Google. Post the word "Franchise" Everything from A to Z'What kind of franchise are you looking for?? Tell us more.Do you have a BUSINESS PLAN?? How large an investment do you want to make??What is your background??Good luck, LUCKIEST

An excellent site is: www.entrepreneur.com/franzone/. You can search by the top franchises in many different categories as well as find out how much it costs to get started, the best franchises you can do from home, etc.

Make sure a franchise is really what you want to do. There are a lot of pros and cons compared with other businesses. Look at some of the old posts on the topic to get a better idea if a franchise is for you.

Be careful Franchises usually have a very high start up cost and usually you do not see any profit for at least 5 years. A better way to go is starting a home based business using the network marketing system, this type of business was singled out by the US Chamber Of Commerce as being the business of the 21st century, it has been endorsed by such business stalwarts such as Donald Trump and Robert Kyiosaki just to name a few. Start-up cost should be around two - three hundred dollars, if you pick the right company this could be a great investment. But always investigate any company you are considering doing business with extensively.

Franchises have a high rate of success and are a good place to start for any new business owner, but be sure a franchise is really what you want to get into. There are many constraints with running a franchise and the start up cost for the more well know ones are huge.

There are several franchise brokers who assist individuals in selecting the franchise which is best suited for them. One of the best is Entrepreneur Source. They administer aptitude tests and financial analysis to help with your selection and provide you with guidance in vetting the franchisor. Make sure that the franchisor is in good financial condition. Earlier this year a major real estate investment franchisor went out of business, leaving over 100 franchisees "high and dry."

Also, be sure to have your business attorney review any franchise agreement you are asked to sign. It is amazing how many people sign agreements assuming that they are not negotiable just because the agreement is on a preprinted form.

I recently began efforts to open a "Jumpin Juice & Java" location in Massachusetts. The franchise is fairly new and on the rise. I've had the opportunity of working with the owner's of the first and only New England store. They also own the rights to the New England Territory and are aggressively looking to expand their operations.

Jumpin Juice & Java is a coffee and smoothie shop that also offers a wide variety of food. They can be compares to Panera Bread, Starbucks, and other similar establishments.

As others have shared there are a number of sites to choose from - a great site is www.thebusinessmarket.com - why? I have reviewed about 400 franchise opportunities throughout a variety of industry. You can search by industry, capital, or location to narrow it down. Also, I have found I am only contacted by the franchisor that I requested information from - not 60 others.

I also have enjoyed www.franbest.com because it is a relevant franchise information and blog site - objective, and you can search franchise information right from the relevant articles.

Justinjoylife, if franchising is what you want to do, go for it. But if you keep an open mind at exploring other opportunities out there, please do. Franchising costs not only money, but you have to have employees, and the profit really after expenses and all is not going to be more than $80K-$120K/yr which compared to the effort and the timing is not worth it for me... I came from a family that had and still has a brick and mortar business and you have to pay me and I won't have one anymore... unless it is something exceptional.

It is better than a job for sure, but not compared to other opportunities.

My story? Left corporate America, with less than a $2000 investment in a very lucrtative home business I turned my annual income into a monthly income... really I am making more money than my doctor and my ex-boss... again, no bragging, or trying to impress anyone here, but I am trying to impress upon you what is possible with the right company and community that can support you.

If you still want to have a franchise... go for it and I wish you the best.

Two books I would recommend you but at Amazon or Barnes and Noble before you take action on this however: -The 4-hour work week by Timothy Ferris (I work 20 hrs a week personally, but my goal really is the 4 hour week and I am setting it in motion. this book delivers what it says) -Rich Dad Poor Dad by Roberty Kiyosaki

Thank you for your reply you make great points. We actually went to Borders and bought 2 books on Franchising - very informative - gave us a lot of questions to ask and things to look for in a franchisor. We are at the beginning of our new adventure.Our son was given the 4 hour work week for Christmas and we picked it up. I haven't gotten to far with it because we were researching the franchising information. I did hear about the other but did not remember it until you suggested it. We'll need to chew on what you wrote - many thanks again!

justinjoylife-- depends on how much money you have to spend. If you have only a couple thousand, look at the various magazines in the bookstores that cover a zillion opportunities.If you have $150k in liquid assets, open a Quiznos or Subway-- the largest players. Incidentally, franchised businesses have the same failure rate as non-franchise businesses--but large franchise companies have a slightly higher success rate, due to the strength of the brand.

Thanks,Dennisanalyst, blitzlocal.cominternet marketing for small business

If you have 150$ its better save most of that in a bank and look for a business where you investment will be low and you profit will be consistant. A million dollar is always better than a penny that doubles every day (because it will be 10 million in 1 month). Many conventional business have reached frozen level or saturation in todays ecomany its always better to looks for some thing unconventaional. For example if you will open a burger place just see how many are alredy there in your zip code and also see what differnce you fast food make.

If I were considering a franchise, I would sit down and list my strengths, weaknesses, interests, experience, etc. I would go with something I could be passionate about and join a franchise which operates the type of business I would enjoy on my own and I am just joining them to tap into a successful business model for what I am already passionate about. :) Once I determined what type of franchises I was interested in and could get passionate about, I would search franchise directories and I would do searches specific to that type of business as well.

Hello, you can come check us out. We are Franchise Team Builders, we are based out of Houston, Texas. We represent 13 Franchises right now, some home based, others in food & beverage, tanning, etc.... come check us out, the address is http://www.franchiseteambuilders.com . If you see something you like feel free to email me at rvaldez@franchiseteambuilders.com and I will get back to you ASAP. Good Luck

At FTB, we dedicate our time and efforts into helping our prospective franchisees get their business up and running without all of the headaches that come with it. We are a franchise consultant company that works with franchisees as well as franchisors to mediate in the sales and development portion of starting up. we have a proven system that walks the franchisee through the development process up to opening day. Feel free to check out our website for a list of our concepts. We are always getting more on board with us.

I am a product of a fanschise business I worked for LIberty Tax Services for 4 years before I started my part time Tax business.

Expenses are very high and they can cause failure. Talk to as many people who have owed the franchise you like. Both sucessul ones and failed ones. Do alot of research. Just do not listen to the sales pitch

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